Lawmakers’ license plate spat ends with downfall of design

AUGUSTA – Legislators’ newly issued license plates, which to some look too much like New Hampshire’s regular vehicle tags, are going the way of the Edsel as the state returns to traditional designs.

The change announced by Maine’s motor vehicle chief quietly ends a small uproar that developed shortly after tags were issued in late 2004 in time for the current two-year legislative session.

Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap said Maine is going back to the previous design – solid red background for senators and bright blue for representatives – as of March 1. Lawmakers will pay one-time replacement fees of $2.

The plates will replace short-lived versions that were light blue on top and green on the bottom, with an image of the State House dome on the side. Some legislators complained that the design was uncomfortably similar to New Hampshire’s, and questioned why they were changed.

Other lawmakers said they didn’t care whether they got special plates at all, let alone what their tags looked like, because there are too many serious issues to deal with. A few legislators just smiled.

“I am amused at the whole thing,” said Rep. Patrick Flood, R-Winthrop.

Dunlap, who was in the Legislature until last year, acknowledged the dissatisfaction with the plates in a letter to legislative leaders, saying “it is not distinctive and … it is difficult to differentiate the Legislative plate from standard-issue designs of other states.”

Assistant Senate Majority Leader Kenneth Gagnon, a Waterville Democrat who helped design the plates, said some people complained they looked too much like Connecticut’s light-blue tags, which include a lighthouse image.